Safety and Security

The work of the CCID’s Safety & Security department is a key reason the South African Police Service (Cape Town) regards the Cape Town Central City as the safest CBD in the country.

Four full-time team members (a manager, an assistant manager and two night managers) oversee a team of around 230 public safety officers (PSOs). These PSOs are contracted via Iliso Protection Services and deployed around the clock to provide top-up services to those delivered by the CCID’s primary safety partners – the City of Cape Town’s Law Enforcement agency and the South African Police Service.

CCID Safety & Security also works tirelessly alongside partners in the Community Police Forum, other improvement districts around the periphery of the CBD and neighbourhood watches close by to maintain the safe reputation of the Central City and surrounds.

The most visible presence of the CCID in the Cape Town CBD is the bright green bibs and caps, with the easily identifiable CCID logo, that our PSOs wear. Seventy officers patrol the streets during the day and 60 at night. They can be found on foot and in vehicles, and are in constant radio contact with the CCID’s 24/7 control room. All CCID PSOs are equipped with body-worn video (BWV) units. These units were introduced in a pilot project in December 2015 and have proved to be so successful in behaviour modification that the system was rolled out to all officers on duty in 2016. Seven mobile, branded kiosks are also positioned across the CBD to further reduce the level of crime.

As a result, the CCID has successfully become the first respondent for incidents in the CBD, with a reaction time of under five minutes.

In addition, the full range – and extensive capabilities – of the CCID’s security partners, including City Law Enforcement’s specialised CCTV Cyclops unit, is just a call away for the Safety & Security team.

The CCID also employs seven dedicated Law Enforcement officers, particularly to assist it in providing powers of arrest and being able to issue fines, giving the organisation the full reach of the law.

Since the CCID was established in 2000, crime within the Central City has reduced by 90%. Part of this can also be credited to the numerous proactive joint security interventions and operations the organisation has implemented over the years, and through the strong partnerships it has built with other law enforcement agencies.

The CCID's PSOs and senior security staff also build and maintain vital relationships with the businesses of the Central City, creating and ensuring a broad network of eyes and ears.

The City's CCTV network

The static CCTV cameras in operation throughout the CBD (and indeed the Cape Town metropole) belong to the City of Cape Town's Strategic Surveillance Unit (SSU), and not the CCID. We regularly receive requests for footage from these cameras and would like the public to note that this can be accessed in one of two ways:

Via the South African Police Service (SAPS) following the opening of a case: Once a case has been opened and SAPS has assigned a detective to the case via a case number, that detective will be able to apply to the SSU to obtain and view the required footage.Via the Access to Information Act: An application can be made to the executive director for safety and security via this act. Forms are available on the City of Cape Town website.